PERKINS TWP - NASA is continuing to spend millions of dollars to provide upgrades at NASA Plum Brook Station, leaving the local NASA facility well-positioned to compete for work.

That's the word from Woodrow Whitlow Jr., director of NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland. He said Glenn is receiving about $20 million during the current fiscal year to allow it to complete modifications at the Space Power Facility, the huge vacuum chamber at Plum Brook.

MIDDLE BASS ISLAND, Ohio - Officials on Friday dedicated the $11.4 million expansion of Middle Bass Island State Park marina, a project that got under way in January, 2001. The Middle Bass project included the construction of 50 additional boat docks, some temporary and some permanent. A 20-site primitive campground was built on the island in 2006, the state DNR said.

In 2008, a large-scale marina entrance and basin-improvement project was completed. That included reshaping the marina basin, building a new entrance channel and revetments, and installing floating dock anchorage piling. The floating docks were completed last year, bringing the total number of docks to 264. A 100,000-gallon elevated water storage tank has been installed, as have water and sewer lines, the state agency said.

This summer, staff housing - along with a permanent shower and restroom building - is to be built. Improvements are expected for the marina office and harbormaster building. Much of the work is being guided by a long-range master plan that was developed for the marina, the agency said.

A $50 million housing development now getting under way in Huron gives Erie County its first new major housing development in a couple of years.

The Two Rivers housing development features upscale houses built to order in a New England, Nantucket style. The 49-acre project is expected to have 121 condominium-style homes. It’s located off Ohio 13, between the Thunderbird Hills Golf Club and the Huron Lagoons Marina.

Amphitheater to open this weekend at Paper District MarinaOrganizers hope Saturday’s highly anticipated debut of an entertainment venue in downtown Sandusky will spawn several encores.ANDY OURIELSANDUSKYOCT 5, 2012

The long-awaited amphitheater at the city’s Paper District Marina, on Shoreline Drive next to the Chesapeake Lofts, opens for its first show at the inaugural Docktoberfest.

They should put a tent (re: Nauticus in Cleveland) over it. It'd kinda match the Sandusk Bay theme. Otherwise, that's great news.

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I love it when people come into a message board and immediately begin to mix it up. I mean, Jesus, at least say hello! Do you walk into a room full of strangers, pick a random woman, and tell her she's fat? - buildingcincinnati

I agree C Dawg. Sandusky is a great city. I lived there for almost 4 years right downtown. There's lots to do for a little city. The downtown area is doing really well. There's several restaurants and several bars and theyre all thriving. I miss living there and coukd dwfinitely see myself moving back there when I'm retired, especially if it keeps getting better.

Now that's a step in the right direction for Sandusky. Capitalize on all those tourists!

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I love it when people come into a message board and immediately begin to mix it up. I mean, Jesus, at least say hello! Do you walk into a room full of strangers, pick a random woman, and tell her she's fat? - buildingcincinnati

As Sandusky's bicentennial (2018) approaches, a new community master plan (a.k.a. The Bicentennial Vision) is in the works. This video shows some incredible drone footage of the city, showcasing a modest but solid revitalization of the downtown.

I love seeing energy coming out of Ohio's smaller cities like this. Sandusky is such a gem and has absolutely massive potential given its location and amenities. It easily has the potential to be Ohio's top-tier small city, and it can and should be a bigger draw than it currently is.

Sandusky is the most undervalued city in the state of Ohio, possibly the entire nation. It's a huge bargain for the quality of life you get. It is my favorite place in the state, and I could see myself investing in a historic property there.

When you add up the downtown core, extensive historic housing stock, coastal location, existing infrastructure (still has functioning Amtrak!), and proximity to major cities like Toledo and Cleveland, it's punching way above its weight. It's not crazy to think of Toledo and Cleveland workers commuting from Sandusky in the future as remote work grows bigger. I could see Amtrak beefing up along Lake Erie too, potentially bringing in people from even further away.

*It's really one of the best cities its size in the entire United States. Some of its economic problems are the result of forces much larger than itself (for example, Lake Erie pollution). The city made a mistake tearing down the long-abandoned Keller Building, but overall it seems to be heading in the right direction. Clean up Lake Erie, and Sandusky could boom. Water pollution is all that's holding it back.

I love it when people come into a message board and immediately begin to mix it up. I mean, Jesus, at least say hello! Do you walk into a room full of strangers, pick a random woman, and tell her she's fat? - buildingcincinnati

SANDUSKY — Imagine a rejuvenated Jackson Street Pier in which the blacktop became a boardwalk.

Walking along the waterfront, people would pass by children frolicking in a splash pad, hear performers entertaining within a small outdoor concert venue and see vendors dishing out tasty treats for hungry customers.

Sandusky officials envisioned the possibilities and now want to turn the idea into a reality with their newest endeavor.

SANDUSKY — Despite bolting to San Diego, a 1979 Margaretta High School graduate plans on charging forward with a massive investment in a Midwest city he loves.

Rick Hogrefe, along with his wife, Meghan, recently bought three downtown Sandusky properties with visions to enhance each one for residential, commercial, entertainment and mixed-use purposes. They worked with local realtor Jenny Craig of Russell Real Estate Services on these sales.

Among the properties they now own outright: The Cooke Building on Columbus Avenue and Market Street; 201 W. Water St., also known as Waters Edge Apartments, near H.D. Tony’s; and 305 E. Water St, located next to Facer Park by New Sandusky Fish Co.

This is all great news for Sandusky. Honestly just by virtue of location and relatively small size, Sandusky has the most/easiest complete-turnaround potential of any city in Ohio.

I totally agree. Once Lake Erie is cleaned up again, Sandusky is a sure bet. It's such a great little city. You get similar housing and neighborhoods as Toledo and Cleveland, but without the big city problems. The location is fantastic, easily the best in Ohio. There is great Lake Erie and Islands access, a major Amtrak line, an excellent natural harbor, I-80/90 access, and not as much lake effect weather as areas further east.

Looking at Port Huron in Michigan (beautiful historic shipping port on Lake Huron/St. Clair River), Sandusky should experience a similar revival. They are similar ports with similar histories and great historic cores. Sandusky is really the best of Ohio. You're right, potential for full turnaround is the best too.

I lived and worked in Sandusky several years ago and I absolutely loved it. Tourism basically ensures the cities future and it is basically the commercial center of North-Central Ohio. Downtown is revitalizing at a crazy rate and is really starting to have a, dare I say, cosmopolitan vibe for being a small rust belt city. There's still plenty of urban problems that are commonplace in the region such as poverty, unemployment, and crime in Sandusky but the city really is coming back in a big way. When I lived there I had a downtown apartment with a view of the State Theater out the front of my building and the lake out of the back. It was excellent. I could honestly see myself retiring in Sandusky someday, especially if things continue the way they are.

Lonz Winery building reopens on Lake Erie’s Middle Bass Island as part of Ohio state park

MIDDLE BASS ISLAND — A stone fortress that housed a historic winery for generations on Lake Erie’s Middle Bass Island is ready for tourists following a renovation finished 17 years after the state of Ohio bought the property.

But the state still is looking for a private operator to help bring the Lonz Winery back to life. The winery hasn’t been open since the summer of 2000 when a concrete terrace collapsed and killed one man and injured 75 others.

Ohio soon bought the winery and the surrounding 120 acres, spending $20 million to build a marina and campsites to create Middle Bass Island State Park. State officials tried without success to find private investors interested in the winery before starting renovations three years ago for an additional $6 million. The Ohio Department of Natural Resources showed off the refurbished winery last month

I think the restored winery looks great. Still...This was a "fort" at one time? I guess that explains why a wonderful patio has its potentially awesome view of the water mostly obscured by a high wall...

^I do not know about it being a fort, but the walls are remnants of the building. They removed the roofs of the winery, so the remaining patio is the old floor of the main level (and now the roof of the wine cellars below).